On Sunday, the crowd at the Paris La Défense Arena got to witness an incredible performance by a swimmer some are calling the next Mark Spitz. Swimming in the 4×100 IM, he came out and blew the field away in a truly stunning performance. When he’s not swimming in the Olympics or international competitions, he was one of the lead swimmers on the Arizona State Sun Devils Swim Team. Oh, and he’s a Frenchman. Yes, Leon Marchand, the gold medalist in the event hails from the small town of Toulouse, France. His parents, former Olympic swimmers themselves, knew that for him to achieve his best he needed to leave France and swim in the US on an NCAA team.
Marchand is just one of hundreds of international students who have moved to the US to train at NCAA schools in their sports and then return to compete for their home countries. According to the NCAA Olympic Dashboard, 835 athletes from 124 countries compete in 16 different sports. That’s a true testament to the collegiate sporting community in helping indirectly foster the Olympic movement. These athletes have found a welcoming home among their US teammates and a great opportunity to grow their skills in a sport.
While the primary sports are swimming, basketball, and athletics, you can find athletes competing in sports like golf, fencing, gymnastics, and several other lesser known sports. Because the schools have maintained an intercollegiate field of competition, the athletes know they can come to the US and continue their sport of choice as well as achieve an education and degree in many fields of study.
Take Marchand who is also studying computer science at ASU after studying the same at Paul Sabatier University in Toulouse. But the reach of the NCAA is more than just foreign athletes. 42 of the members of Team USA are also current students at NCAA schools. What makes this even more special is when an alumnus from your own school is in that starting block or on the field of competition. It gives you that linkage to the Olympics in a special way.
Yes, the NCAA is a part of helping promote Citius, Altius, Fortius.